Hamas, the Palestinian militant group in power in the Gaza strip, shut down Palfest on Wednesday, a cultural event organized by Egyptian bloggers.

The news was announced on their official Twitter account:

The police reportedly entered the conference with weapons and closed down the event. One of audience's camera was also confiscated. The police reportedly intervened because the speakers were critical of Hamas.

Palfest is a cultural event which aims at bringing "writers and artists from around the world to Palestinian audiences." Amongst the speakers were prominent Egyptian blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah, who played a major role in the Egyptian uprising.

On Twitter Egyptian and Palestinian activists expressed their outrage: